
Health Care Roundup: Gov’t Shutdown Affects FDA; Health Care Hearings; Insomnia & Cancer; “When Cancer Meets the Internet;” More
Gov't Shutdown Affects FDA; Congressional Hearings on Health Care Scheduled – The government shutdown is now the longest in U.S. history. This week, NCCS joined 46 groups in a letter to Congress and President Trump highlighting the impact the shutdown is having on the FDA’s work on behalf of patients ...

NCCS Letter to CMS Highlights Concerns About Proposed Medicare Part B Reforms
On December 31st, NCCS submitted our final comment letter of the year to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services regarding the advance notice of proposed rulemaking for the Medicare Part B drug program. In the letter, we outlined concerns that this proposal could have on Medicare beneficiaries such as ...

NCCS “Not Persuaded” Drug Pricing in DTC Ads Will Improve Doctor-Patient Communication
Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule that would require information about drug costs be included in direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertisements of prescription drugs and biological products. NCCS issued a statement regarding the proposal, saying, “While we understand [...] ...

NCCS Health Care Roundup: Gov’t Shutdown Threat; NCCS Webinar; Analysis of 8 Democratic Universal Health Care Plans; More
After days of tense negotiations, the House and Senate left town Thursday with no plan to avoid a partial government shutdown. The House will return December 19, leaving only 72 hours for both parties to reach an agreement before a shutdown goes into effect at midnight on December 21. Most ...

Health Care Roundup: New Medicare Drug Pricing Proposal; New ACA Waiver Guidance; High Price of Precision Medicine; Midterms; More
A Week of Proposals and New Regulations – This week, there were several regulations and proposals announced by the Trump Administration that would impact health care in the U.S. The announcement that made the biggest splash was revealed yesterday and would require drugs administered by physicians and paid for by ...

Health Care Roundup: Drug Pricing in TV Ads; Even with Insurance, Serious Illness Can Mean Financial Distress; Fertility in Young Survivors; More
HHS Proposes Rule Requiring Drug Pricing in TV Ads – On Monday, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar announced that HHS introduced a proposed rule to require direct-to-consumer television advertisements for prescription drugs include pricing information. According to the proposed rule, drugs paid for by Medicare ...

Health Care Roundup: Patient Orgs Push Back on ‘Junk Insurance’; Rx ‘Gag Clause’ Bans; What Survivors Wish Others Understand; ACA Premiums; More
NCCS & Patient Orgs Push Back on Short-term Plans — Recently, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced it would allow insurers to offer expanded short-term, limited duration plans, known as “junk insurance.” This action led NCCS to join several other national organizations in filing an amicus curiae ...

Health Care Roundup: Medicare ‘Step Therapy’ Concerns; Alternative Cancer Treatment Risks; Immunotherapy Scientists Win Nobel Prize; More
HEALTH CARE HIGHLIGHT – NCCS Submits Concerns to HHS Regarding New “Step Therapy” Plan – NCCS joined with other cancer organizations of the Cancer Leadership Council (CLC) in a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the ...

NCCS Joins with Cancer Leadership Council to Outline Concerns Regarding New “Step Therapy” Plan
NCCS joined with other cancer organizations of the Cancer Leadership Council (CLC) in a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the new plan announced on August 7 that gives Medicare Advantage plans the option of applying ...

Health Care Roundup: NCCS on Proposed OPPS Changes; Bipartisan Proposal to End ‘Surprise Billing’; Medicaid Work Req’s; Financial Toxicity Survey; More
HEALTH CARE HIGHLIGHTS—NCCS submitted a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on the proposed update to the hospital outpatient prospective payment system, known as OPPS, for calendar year 2019. In the letter, NCCS addressed the proposed “site neutral” payments, which would reduce patient cost-sharing but could ...